Origin and History
The pottery was founded in 1903 by the artist and teacher Mary Chase Perry Stratton and Horace James Caulkins, her partner Caulkins was considered a high-heat and kiln specialist, and developed the "Revelation kiln". Mary Perry Stratton was "the artistic and marketing force." The collaboration of two and their blend of art and technology gave the pottery its distinctive qualities as Detroit's contribution to the International Arts and Crafts movement and exemplified the American Craftsman Style.
The word Pewabic is derived from the Ojibwa (or Chippewa) word for the color of copper metal (or perhaps the clay from which copper came) and specifically referring to the "Pewabic" Upper Peninsula copper mine where Ms. Stratton walked with her father. It refers to the unusual iridescent glaze covering the pottery and tiles created in a manner outlined by the International Arts and Crafts Movement. Compare,
In 1991, Pewabic Pottery was designated as a National Historic Landmark. See also, List of National Historic Landmarks in Michigan. As Michigan's only historic pottery, the center continues to operate in a 1907 Tudor Revival building as a non-profit educational institution. They offer classes in ceramics, hold exhibitions, sell pottery made in house and offer design and fabrication services.
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